Barack Obama is to America what Governor Jennifer Granholm has been for Michigan; a superficial presence voting present, offering only utopian platitudes of what should be. Constantly trying, and failing miserably to pick economic winners that only have fractional benefits, backed by heavy subsidies from…government!

They both show up at local events extolling the “new” energy plant that will employ dozens, while the state they represent is laying off thousands.

Obama pursues the Olympic bid while abandoning our troops in Afghanistan. Granholm lets legislators publicly slug out a budget and make the difficult choices, and then swoops in at the last minute to veto it, offering no input except that the cuts were: “too drastic.”

With this Olympic bid, Obama acts like he’s still in the Senate….simply delivering a pork barrel project for the hometown. Yet like many of our ostensible representatives, he is bereft of the actual geography of his own region, infused with a sense of self-importance that he alone can deliver. In Michigan, Granholm is phoning it in, casually serving out her last year of 8 solid years of declining growth, continued private sector layoffs, and a family leaving the state every 22 minutes.

The Olympics deal was probably wrapped up a week ago, and he’s just going to mug for the cameras. Meanwhile, he votes present on all his socialist proposals, and the electorate, now feeling betrayed, seethes. In Michigan, we are anxiously awaiting the Governor’s naming of an appointee to turn off the lights.— P. Aaron Jones Huntington Woods, Michigan

Does this really surprise anyone? More to the point, should it surprise anyone? The whole thing has a decidedly vulpine aroma about it.— Gretchen L. Chellson Alexandria, Virginia

Of course President Obama wants to bring the Olympics to America. He has already given the people bread (The Porkulus Package) and soon he will bring the circus. The question is will he somehow find a way to still be in the White House when the circus comes to town?-I.M. Kessel

Endless-campaigner indecisive Barack Obama’s got any spirit, worldly or otherwise, except American patriotic spirit. But, then, how could or why would he have what appears to repulse him?

Having never worn a uniform, he understands nothing about command and troops’ morale. But he’s crushing the morale of our men and women in uniform, at least in Afghanistan, I hear.

Recently, the mother of a chaplain stationed in Afghanistan told me she’s been hearing that the troops’ morale there is not good. “How could it be, with this president?” I asked. She nodded that she agreed. Being the good chaplain he is, her son asked her to ask our church members to pray for the troops. Wonder how many times filled-with-the-Olympic-spirit Barack and Michelle have done that?— C. Kenna Amos Jr.

Please read what your own Angelo Codevilla has written about “energy independence” — what good is it for? Why should anyone pay more for alternative sources when oil is cheaper? The only reason would be national security — but if the U.S. is not serious about fighting foreign wars (and it is not), what possible good is it to anyone to have “energy independence”? If the Saudis are our enemies, we should treat them as such, not grumble because we have to buy their oil. We don’t fear to fight because the oil will get cut off — we fear to fight because we don’t understand war.— Michael Schwenk

America has coal reserves equal or greater than all of Saudi Arabia. The Germans in WWll invented a process of turning coal into diesel.

America has over one trillion (TRILLION) barrels of oil in coal shale, which cost about $50 per barrel to extract.

Canada has over one trillion barrels of oil in tar sands and is profitably extracting the oil. America’s natural gas reserves are bountiful.

The nuclear power industry has invented a new generation of reactors that are safer than ever ( that’s where stimulus money should go , building new nuclear plants….high paying construction jobs for over four years).

The Gulf of Mexico has untold of reserves, and new deep drilling techniques are available and practical. Venezuela has over a trillion barrels of oil in clay strata. It’s frustrating to hear someone parrot “we are running out of oil.” It’s nonsense. Anyone for global warming-climate change…huh?— Fred Edwards Tucson, Arizona

So, Whoopi Goldberg doesn’t think what Polanski did to the child was rape-rape? I have read the horrifying transcript of the girl’s testimony, and I don’t see how it could possibly be called anything else. Perhaps on El Auria, Guinan’s home world, drugging and forcibly sodomizing a child is just peachy-keen, but not on this planet.

If Mr. Polanski is incarcerated I hope, for his sake he is kept away from the rest of the prison population. Even the most hardened villains take an extremely dim view of child molesters and deal with them accordingly; the guards usually manage to be “on break” when this occurs.— Gretchen L. Chellson Alexandria, Virginia

Had Polanski done as much to a daughter of mine, I would go Al Bundy on him. My disgust with the man is unbounded.— David Govett Davis, California

To anyone who wishes to glimpse into chutzpa (Yiddish for nerve), standing up to evil and facing down a hostile world, do yourself a favor and see Melville Shavelson’s Cast a Giant Shadow. It showcases the national (re)birth Israel and the midwife that was America.— I.M. Kessel

I watched parts of Parks. As interesting as this Burns’ program was, the air of political correctness throughout was too much for me to take. Sad that this very talented person is a poster child of the PC culture.— Anonymous

Wonderful column! The author captures brilliantly the methodology by which the “race hustlers” try to convince minorities that everyone is a racist. This attitude has been a destructive force and generates the “victim” mentality seen today.— Theresa DeLuca-Brensinger